Pope Accepts Offer To Make 1st Trip To Orthodox Nation

February 14, 1999|By Steve Kloehn, Tribune Religion Writer.

ROME — Pope John Paul II has accepted an invitation from an Orthodox patriarch to visit Romania, opening the door for the pontiff's first trip to a predominantly Orthodox country, the Vatican announced Saturday.

Patriarch Teoctist, leader of the Romanian Orthodox church, said Friday that he and his bishops had agreed to ask the pope to visit the formerly communist nation of 22 million people, 80 percent of whom are nominally Orthodox. Romania also has 300,000 Eastern-rite Catholics, who use a Greek Orthodox liturgy but recognize the pope as their leader, as well as several hundred thousand Roman Catholics.

The visit, which has not been scheduled yet, could mark an important step in Catholic-Orthodox relations, which have stumbled in recent years over the issue of the Eastern-rite or "Uniate" churches.

Historically, Orthodox churches have objected to the presence of Eastern-rite Catholic churches, viewing them as Rome's attempt to gain power in eastern Europe and the Middle East. More recently, the Orthodox and Eastern-rite Catholics have clashed over property Communist authorities confiscated from Eastern-rite Catholics and gave to the government-sanctioned Orthodox church.

The visit's announcement came as Cardinal Francis George and Greek Orthodox Metropolitan Iakovos of Chicago were at the Vatican's Council for Christian Unity.

George and Iakovos are leading a delegation of 25 Chicagoans of both faiths as a way to improve relations on the local level. The group was received last week in Istanbul by Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople, considered the first among equals in the leadership of the 250-million strong Orthodox faith.

The Chicago delegation is scheduled for an audience with the pope on Monday.